RCMP ask for patience during ‘complex’ investigation

SPRINGHILL - As the first signs of Thursday’s nor’easter began to blow into Springhill it was a subdued scene where two bodies were found during a home fire Tuesday.

RCMP moved their roadblock a little closer to the intersection on Athol Road as investigators worked inside the story-and-a-half Beaton Lane home. Occasionally a bright flash could be scene from a camera through an upstairs window, or silhouettes of people moving through the downstairs.

The RCMP’s Northeast Major Crimes Unit and RCMP Forensic Identification Section, the Nova Scotia Medical Examiner’s Service and the Office of the Fire Marshall are all involved in the investigation.

In a correspondence with SaltWire Network, Cpl. Dal Hutchinson described the investigation as complex. Residents should not, however, fear for the safety while investigators work their way towards the truth of the matter.

“I would encourage people to dispel rumours and await facts from the police,” Hutchinson wrote. “If there was a risk to public safety we would notify the public.

“This is a complex investigation that will require time to determine what actually took place.”

Earlier Thursday, RCMP released the ages and genders of the two bodies removed from a home following a house fire on Beatons Lane just outside of Springhill Tuesday afternoon as a 45-year-old woman and a 42-year-old man.

The RCMP’s Northeast Nova Major Crimes Unit continues to investigate the deaths with assistance from the RCMP Forensic Identification Section, the Nova Scotia Medical Examiner's Service and the Office of the Fire Marshall.

Cumberland District RCMP were called to the quiet dead-end lane on the outskirts of Springhill just before 4:30 p.m. on Tues, Mar. 20, after Springhill firefighters located the remains of two people inside the home while extinguishing a fire.

The older home is located on Beaton Lane that runs off the Athol Road just west of the former town of Springhill. There are several homes on the street.